Lin-Manuel Miranda Thinks Jordan Fisher 'Would Be A Pretty Good Benny' in IN THE HEIGHTS Film

By: Feb. 09, 2017
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As has been previously announced, Lin-Manuel Miranda's Tony Award winning musical IN THE HEIGHTS will be adapted to the big screen by The Weinstein Company. Scott Sanders and Mara Jacobs will produce the movie along with Miranda through Scott Sanders Productions. The musical, which debuted off-Broadway on Feb. 8, 2007, went on to be nominated for 13 TONY AWARDS in 2008, and won for Best Musical, Best Original Score, Best Choreography and Best Orchestrations. In addition, the show received a Grammy for Best Musical Theater Album and was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize.

As theater fans worldwide eagerly await the film adaptation, little details of the casting are known. However in an interview this week with the Huffington Post, Miranda revealed that he does have one talented actor in mind for the project. "There's certainly some incredible young Latino talent that were still babies when we were opening off-Broadway. But I hadn't thought about it," shares the Oscar nominee, adding. "I think Jordan Fisher would be a pretty good Benny. He's playing Laurens [in 'Hamilton'] for me on Broadway and he's a super-talented young man." The 22-year-old actor and singer is well known for his roles in the "Teen Beach" movie franchise and portrayed "Doody" in FOX's live broadcast of GREASE: LIVE. Fisher is also featured on the "Moana" soundtrack and last year released the hit single, "All About Us."

Asked if he would consider reprising his role of Usnavi for the film version, Miranda joked that he doesn't want to be "the guy who's too old in the club." He explains, "I don't want to play the role if it feels like it's not age-appropriate with the rest of the cast." He adds, "But Chris Jackson [who originated the role of Benny in the show] and I can be in the background playing dominoes during 'When You're Home' and that would be f**king great."

Read the interview in full HERE

Below, watch Jordan Fisher sing "Those Magic Changes" in 2016's Grease Live :

Photo Credit: Walter McBride / WM Photos



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